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Hey Matt, my White GSD had a pretty similar case. For me switching to raw helped a ton. He still gets itchy but I assume that's environmental issues but no where near as bad as when he was on kibble. I did elimination diet as well and none of it made a difference.

We have been working in a lot of raw food into her diet. We have pretty much replaced her lunch with raw chicken or beef. In addition, we use half chickens, chicken legs, wings, and beef necks as treats for her. It's working well, costs next to nothing, and she loves them.

At first we stuck with one protein and then added a different one the next week. We closely monitored the scratching too see if the specific added protein would increase the itching. There seemed to be no change.

We tried, turkey, chicken, and beef.

As far as switching to a complete raw diet; we're working on it. I need to make sure we have access to the proper meats/organs before we completely switch over.

GSD's should not be bathed so often as they need the natural oils from their body. Try brushing them every day or every other day. Limit the baths to maybe once every two months, I believe this will not make their skin so dry and itchy. Give it a try and hope it makes a difference for your dog.

Yeney,
I am not sure if you're even directing this comment at me because of all the side bade conversations that occurred on this thread. However, if you are, we bathe Watson about once a quarter unless she really needs it (out in the mud during a walk or after a hike). I mostly do this to scan for ticks as the wet fur makes it substantially easier and she seems to be a beacon for those things.

Anyways, we have found some moisturizing/conditioners and were wondering if anyone has had any relief using those? As I said in earlier posts, this is an ongoing thing but reducing her itchiness in the meantime, is still something I want to experiment with.

To everyone else,
No real update. The spring/summer here in Virginia hasn't changed anything. Windows open or closed. AC on or off. The itching/scratching still occurs.

Something interesting though. We went on a long hike a couple weeks ago and not once did she stop and scratch. For the most part, when we are outside, there is no scratching. Could this be because her mind is so distracted or could it be that there IS something environmentally effecting her? Any advice?

Thanks again and have a great extended weekend,
Matt

05-02-2014 09:28 AM

Traveler's Mom

Hi Yeney- welcome to the board.

Your advice is generally correct but in the case of staph infections, it is recommended to wash the dogs very frequently-ususally once a week or more. The reasoning is that the medicated baths will decrease the amount of bacteria on their skin.
Lynn & Traveler

05-02-2014 09:04 AM

Yeney

GSD's should not be bathed so often as they need the natural oils from their body. Try brushing them every day or every other day. Limit the baths to maybe once every two months, I believe this will not make their skin so dry and itchy. Give it a try and hope it makes a difference for your dog.

05-02-2014 02:27 AM

panzerghost

Hey Matt, my White GSD had a pretty similar case. For me switching to raw helped a ton. He still gets itchy but I assume that's environmental issues but no where near as bad as when he was on kibble. I did elimination diet as well and none of it made a difference.

04-28-2014 05:22 PM

Traveler's Mom

Hi Oliver's Mom,

This is good to know. I didn't know/didn't think there would be tests to tell what kind of staph. I thought staph was staph I'll ask tomorrow when we are at the vets. It's a great idea. Traveler has had his fair share of ear infections over the years- I'm embarrassed to say I didn't know enough to put 2 and 2 together.

The Apoquel is amazing stuff but I'm out and the doggie derm can't get any until August per the manufacturer. I am hesitant about the product because it is so new so I'd be happy to find a more permanent solution.

I want to try the Usnea mentioned but until I get a firm reading from his regular vet, I'm holding off. I don't want to do anything that will skew the tests.

I'll report back what I find out.

04-28-2014 05:10 PM

Oliver'smom

Traveler's mom- I think part of the reason Ollie's staff infections came back so frequently is that for a while he was on various immune system suppressing drugs in an attempt to find something to control the allergies. This made it so much easier for the staff to start a big infection when it got inside a scratch and to top if off the drug we were using to fight the bug was one it has resistant to.

I'm no bio-chemist, but apoquel attacks allergies in a different way by binding to various receptors to stop allergic reaction. So we haven't had the topical staff skin infections from scratching since starting apoquel. In addition, the scratching has decreased dramatically so the staff hasn't had a chance to become a problem.

If Traveler has reoccurring staff infections, you may want to think about paying for the extra lab tests that will tell you exactly which kind of staff your dog has and then you know exactly which antibiotic to take to treat it. I suppose we all have staff bacteria, some of us just come with a bigger, badder batch.

04-28-2014 04:42 PM

Traveler's Mom

Wow, that's interesting. As I understand it, staph is typically tough to get rid of. As Heidigsd mentioned, environmental allergies are possible. I took Traveler to a doggie derm and he wanted tons of money for the testing. She likely right in that in the long run it could save money but Traveler's symptoms don't seem to point to environmental issues. Maybe someday I'll go down that road but I'm not comfortable doing it now.

We'll see what his regular vet says tomorrow.

04-28-2014 02:04 PM

Oliver'smom

At first he rec'd simplicef for the staff infections, but them seemed to reoccur every few weeks (this was prior to starting Apoquel when we were trying different foods and other anti-histamines). However after his last ear infection, we did a special lab test of his ear gunk and discovered that we are doubly lucky and Ollie has an antibiotic resistant strain of staff that is in his natural bacterial mix so we were prescribed something different to address his special staff bugs. I can't remember the name of the drug off hand, but can check later at home if you think it might help you. I do remember they were very big pills and were a pain to get him to swallow.

04-28-2014 01:48 PM

Heidigsd

I only have one thing to add. I am dealing with my second GSD with environmental allergies and I can honestly say that I would make an appointment with a dermatologist. It costs a little more at first but will actually save you money in the long term.

Good luck

04-28-2014 01:40 PM

Traveler's Mom

Oliver's Mom,

What did the vet prescribe for the staph infections? Traveler's came back so we are meeting the vet again tomorrow. He is 90 lbs and was on Cefpodoxime 300 mg daily.

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